Penta-Ocean Construction has ordered a cable-laying vessel worth ¥6.5bn ($243m), which the company touts as the “world’s largest and most advanced cable layer”.
Singapore’s PaxOcean Group will build the ship at its Batam yard.
Construction cost for the cable layer’s hull is ¥31bn, while the trencher and work class remotely operated vehicle (ROV) will cost about ¥5.5bn, according to a Penta-Ocean announcement.
This new cable layer is self-propelled and mounted with two 5,000-tonne cable carousels also known as cable storage, “enabling safe and efficient cable laying in the open sea with severe metocean conditions”.
The latest trencher for burying cables and work class ROV will come installed with the cable layer to ensure the vessel can efficiently perform cable burial work.
Delivery of the vessel is scheduled for February 2028 and will begin operations in 2029.
According to Penta-Ocean, the cable layer will be 50/50 owned by a company subsidiary and Fuyo General Lease Co, while the trencher and work class ROV will be 65/35 owned by a company subsidiary and Kojimagumi Co.
Japanese ocean dredger company Kojimagumi will handle the vessel’s operational management.
The 14,000-dwt cable layer was designed by Norwegian firm Salt Ship Design and will be classed by ClassNK.
“The cable layer is capable of laying and burying not only cables for bottom-fixed offshore wind turbines but also for floating-type offshore wind turbines, as well as submarine direct current power transmission cables,” Penta-Ocean said.
The company said that its decision to build the world’s largest and most advanced cable-laying vessel stems from its plan to expand beyond offshore wind turbine construction into power cable installation, targeting future offshore wind power projects in Japan’s exclusive economic zone and other regions
Penta-Ocean said it expects to start full-scale construction in what it terms “general sea areas” during Japan’s 2028 fiscal year.
The company also said its strategy aligns with Japan’s focus on developing bottom-fixed offshore wind power facilities in port areas.
